In 1717
four London Lodges took the unprecedented step to form a Grand Lodge and thereby
uniting masonry under one sole authoritative body. Freemasonry arrived in
Gibraltar some ten years later when a number of military Brethren congregated to
form the first Masonic Lodge in the Garrison. The earliest recorded evidence of
their Masonic activities can be found in the Grand Lodge Minutes for the 10th
May 1727 which records:

‘His Grace the Duke
of Richmond proposed health and success to our brethren of the lodge of
Gibraltar, which was drank accordingly.’

It was
appropriate for the Grand Master to have proposed ‘health and success’ to the
brethren at Gibraltar for the Garrison was effectively under siege during the
founding of this Lodge, the first to be formed outside the British Isles. The
distinction however has been credited to the Three Fleur de Luces Lodge formed
in Madrid on the 15th February 1728 by the exiled Jacobite the Duke
of Wharton almost a year after the first recorded acknowledgement of the
Gibraltar Lodge. The delays in communications as a result of the siege and the
fact that the Charles Labelle, Worshipful Master of the Spanish Lodge had
personally attended Grand Lodge to present a petition on behalf of his Lodge
meant that the Madrid brethren literally jumped the queue. The Three Fleur de
Luces Lodge received the number 50 whilst the Gibraltar Lodge, which had by then
adopted the name the Lodge of St. John of Jerusalem, was issued a Warrant
bearing the number 51 in the roll of Lodges under the Grand Lodge of England.
According to the famous Masonic historian Robert Freke Gould, the Lodge of St.
John of Jerusalem became the first purely military Lodge in existence within the
English Constitution although it is not traditionally viewed as such because of
the stationary nature of its Warrant. The Lodge would affectionately become
known as ‘Mother’ Lodge in recognition of its prominence and prestige amongst
both civilian and military Lodges within the Garrison.

Even
before the Lodge of St. John of Jerusalem had been officially recognized there
is circumstantial evidence that a Mr. Lewes had been appointed Provincial Grand
Master by Grand Lodge in 1727. His name appears in the Historical Supplement
(1969 edition) published under the Authority of the United Grand Lodge of
England but few historical sources have survived confirming his appointment to
office. Captain James Cummerford succeeded Lewes as Provincial Grand Master in
1732. His patent included the provision ‘places adjacent’ and for the
first time the province of Andalusia came under the jurisdiction of the Grand
Master in Gibraltar. Colonel J.G Montresor a founder member of the Lodge of St.
John of Jerusalem No. 51 became the third Provincial Grand Master for Andalusia
in 1752. His patent of office now included provision for the establishment of a
District Grand Lodge in Gibraltar and it is from this year that the District
Grand Lodge of Gibraltar now celebrates its 250th Anniversary.
Montresor’s appointment coincides with the great schism of 1751, which resulted
in the formation of rival Grand Lodge under the Ancients. In due time this
division would seriously test the harmony of the Brethren arranged under the
banners of the two Constitutions, particularly with the arrival of numerous
military Lodges holding warrants issued by the Ancients Grand Lodge.

The
Provincial Grand Lodge remaining loyal to the Moderns was responsible for the
establishment of the first civilian Lodge in Gibraltar, the Inhabitants Lodge
No. 285 to cater for the British mercantile Brethren who settled on the Rock. In
1774 the St. John’s Lodge, which had taken over the duties of Provincial Grand
Lodge in the absence of a Grand Master constituted the Hiram’s Lodge under local
Warrant. This Lodge was comprised almost entirely of Jewish Brethren who were no
doubt wholeheartedly sponsored by members of the Inhabitants Lodge No. 285 with
whom the established entrepot trade with the Barbary Coast almost exclusively
depended. In 1786 a few years after the end of the Great Siege the members of
Hiram’s Lodge officially applied for a Warrant from the Grand Lodge in England,
this was accepted and a new Warrant and number 490 was allocated to the Lodge.
So far the language and social barrier had prevented any native Roman Catholic
inhabitants from joining the local Craft on the Rock. However, in by 1789 enough
influential Roman Catholics had been initiated into Hiram’s Lodge and they in
turn applied for a Warrant to form a third civilian Lodge under the Moderns. The
Lodge of Friendship was constituted in 1789 and became the first Lodge credited
with the distinction of carrying out their ceremonies in at least three
languages, English, Spanish and Italian. The Minutes between 1799 and 1813 are
written in Spanish, whilst for the year 1807 the Secretary, being of Genoese
origin recorded the proceedings in Italian. This was truly a most cosmopolitan
Lodge.

Masonic
ritual and custom has very much changed in the ensuing 250 years since the
formation of our District Grand Lodge. Installations, for example were carried
bi-annually to coincide with the festivities of two saints bearing the name St.
John; December 27th dedicated to St. John the Evangelist and June 24th
dedicated to St. John the Baptist. On both days the Brethren of the various
Lodges of all Constitutions would early in the morning arrange themselves under
their respective banners and march in procession wearing their full regalia for
a church service. After the service the Brethren retired to their respective
Lodge venues (usually in taverns such as the Three Anchors, Freemasons Arms and
Kings Arms among others) to conduct their private ceremony of Installation
followed by a Festive Board. As all Lodges installed their various Officers at
the same time, visitations were normally carried out during the Festive Board
when each Lodge would as a sign of courtesy send representatives to each other
to convey Fraternal Salutations and congratulate the newly installed Master of
each particular Lodge.

The
Ancients had for the first twenty years of its existence made relatively slow
progress in Gibraltar. A small number of warrants had been issued to Brethren in
Gibraltar, but these had either lapsed soon afterwards or left the Garrison. In
1772 Lodge No. 148 attached to members of the Royal Artillery arrived in
Gibraltar from Perth. Their presence immediately caused consternation amongst
the Modern Lodges and attempts were made to prevent the Royal Artillery Lodge to
partake of the St. John’s day public procession of the 27th December
1773 on account of their Warrant having been issued by the Ancients. The
Artillery Lodge was however supported by the four Irish Military Lodges in the
Garrison and the matter was referred to the Governor the Hon. Edward Cornwallis
himself a Modern Mason for arbitration. Captain Murray R.N an Irish Mason proved
the authenticity of the Warrant when he pointed out the warrant had been signed
by Cornwallis’s own uncle, the Earl of Moira.

In 1779
the Great Siege of Gibraltar resulted in a vast increase of reinforcements for
the Rock. The new Regiments stationed in the Garrison also included a
substantial increase in the number of Military Warrants under the Irish,
Ancients and Scottish Constitutions whilst the Modern civilian Lodges
disappeared for the duration of the siege, its members being dispersed after
fleeing the town. The Military Lodge of St. John of Jerusalem being the senior
Lodge in the Province attempted to exert its influence over the new Lodges
working in Gibraltar but were rebuffed by the fellow officers for working under
the Moderns to whom the Ancients and Irish owed no allegiance. Despite applying
for and obtaining a Provincial Grand Lodge Warrant no Lodge in the Garrison
accepted their authority and it was as a result of this that the members of the
Lodge of St. John then applied for a Provincial Grand Lodge Warrant under the
Ancients. This was granted in 1786 and the Lodge was now given the No. 220.

The new
Provincial Grand Lodge of Andalusia now held by the former members of the Lodge
of St. John of Jerusalem had under its authority the Artillery Lodge No.148 (now
St. John no. 115), Ordnance Lodge No.202 (now Inhabitants’ no.153), and another
lodge bearing the number 230. The Ordnance Lodge had been constituted in 1777
and became the first inhabitants Lodge under the Ancients. Lodge 230 was
constituted in 1785 to several military Brethren in the 1st Battalion
Royal Artillery. This latter Lodge returned to Woolwich, England in 1792 and
eventually united with Lodges No. 13 and 418 to become Union Waterloo Lodge No.
13 on the 1st December 1826.

In 1785
soon after the end of the Great Siege the five Modern Lodges gradually
re-established their Lodges only to find to their horror that their position of
influence had shifted decisively in favour of their arch rivals the Ancients.
They also found themselves without a Provincial Grand Master to direct the
Lodges through such difficult times. The remnants of the Lodge of Jerusalem
Lodge (now No. 24), Inhabitants, (No. 159), Hiram’s Lodge (No.400), Calpean No.
465 (now Royal Lodge of Friendship) and the Lodge of Friendship No.486 now found
themselves not only outnumbered but also alienated from the numerous Ancient and
Irish Lodges that had established themselves on the Rock since the start of the
Great Siege. Although the majority of the brethren from ‘Mother’ Lodge defected
to form themselves into a rival Provincial Grand Lodge, the Modern Lodges
including a handful of members from ‘Mother’ Lodge remained loyal to the
authority of the Moderns and soon under the drive and determination of Reverend
William Leake the Governor’s own Chaplain re-established the authority of the
Premier Grand Lodge of England primarily amongst the civilian population. For
his fervency and zeal Leake was appointed with the support and thanks of the
other Modern Lodges as Provincial Grand Master in 1788. However, Leakes
arrogance and determination to impose his totalitarian authority as Provincial
Grand Master not only antagonized the Ancient brethren but also caused great
alarm and concern amongst his own subordinates. As a result the officers of the
newly revived Provincial Grand Lodge offended by certain remarks allegedly made
by Leake against the sister of a Brother of the Inhabitants Lodge convened and
suspended Leake from his duties as Provincial Grand Master. Grand Lodge finally
settled the escalating row with the appointment of HRH Prince Edward, Duke of
Kent as Provincial Grand Master for Gibraltar and Andalusia in 1790, which
effectively superseded Leakes Patent of Appointment. The imminent arrival of the
Duke of Kent to take up his duties as Governor of Gibraltar allowed the Grand
Master to finally eliminate the embarrassing situation between the Provincial
Grand Master WBro. Leake and his Lodge Officers. The Duke of Kent however
remained away from Gibraltar for most of his term of office and his brief stay
was overshadowed by mutiny amongst the ranks and resentment from his Officers
for his pedantic attention to petty detail. On pure speculation one must wonder
what influence would the Prince have enjoyed had he been Provincial Grand Master
of the Antients under whose authority the bulk of the military Freemasons
pledged allegiance rather than the Moderns mainly composed of civilians. His
recall to London by his brother, the Duke of York no doubt relieved the Garrison
but a petition signed by over a hundred of the leading citizens of the Rock
prayed for his early return. His absence prompted the ‘Modern’ Lodges attempting
to retain the initiative by securing the appointment of RWBro. John Sweetland as
Acting Provincial Grand Master of Andalusia in 1801. This move had been
interpreted by VWBro. J.W.V Cumming in his essay ‘The first two hundred years of
the Craft’ as an attempt by four of the Modern Lodges to apparently steal a
march on their Ancient brethren. This was not the case as the Antients in
Gibraltar enjoyed its own Provincial Grand Lodge and elected its own Grand
Master. Cummings is also wrong in suggesting that the lapse of the Modern Lodges
at the same time around the turn of the century may well have been due to ‘the
influence of the Duke of Kent, an enthusiastic Antient Mason who was Governor
and Commander in Chief of a community of mainly military Masons.’ Nothing could
be further from the truth, by the time these Lodges lapsed the Duke had already
been recalled to London and never returned to Gibraltar. Nevertheless, whilst
the Duke of Kent did become an Antient Mason a few years later he did so not by
conviction but by necessity in order to succeed the Duke of Atholl as Grand
Master of the Antients whilst still actively negotiating the amalgamation of the
Antients Grand Lodge with the Premier Grand Lodge (Moderns) headed by his own
brother the Duke of Sussex. It was his personal influence that finally led to
the Union of these rival Grand Lodges in 1813.

From 1788
to the time of the Union in 1813, Gibraltar was under the jurisdiction of two
separate Grand Lodges. The Modern Provincial Grand Lodge comprised almost
exclusively of civilians whilst the Ancients Provincial Grand Lodge exercised
its authority over the numerous Military Lodges stationed for any length of time
on the Rock. This Provincial Grand Lodge also took under its authority many
traveling Lodges stationed in the Garrison regardless of whether they belonged
to the Irish or Scottish Constitution. It is known that the Grand Lodge of
Ireland that had by far warranted the greatest number of army lodges of the
three Constitutions ordered its lodges to submit to the local authority of
Provincial Grand Lodge whilst working in Gibraltar.

In 1804 a
devastating epidemic of Yellow Fever caused the deaths of thousands with the
civilian population bearing the brunt of the fatalities. It was generally
thought that this epidemic had been the cause of the disappearance of a number
of civilian Lodges in Gibraltar, however, Freemasonry amongst the civilian
Lodges had been more or less suspended since 1801 due to a general order issued
by the Governor O’Hara prohibiting any society from meeting in the Garrison. The
epidemic a few years later again certainly ensured that many of these Lodges,
which lay dormant, were never able to successfully revive their Lodges as many
of the civilian Brethren from Gibraltar dispersed to other shores. The
emigration of so many civilian members led to the lapse of the popular Modern
Lodges including the venerable Lodge of St. John of Jerusalem No. 24,
Inhabitants Lodge No. 159 and Hiram’s Lodge No. 400. Only the Lodge of
Friendship No. 465 and Calpean Lodge No. 480 survived the Union and Calpean in
particular only survived after amalgamating with the Lodge of Friendship in
1813. Today evidence of this fusion of Lodges is still evident in the Warrant of
the present day Lodge of Friendship No. 278, which meets under the Warrant and
Lodge number of the Calpean Lodge No. 480.

Following
the Union and the end of the Napoleonic War Freemasonry entered a period of
decline mainly as a result of the reduction of military personnel and the bleak
economic situation now facing Gibraltar following the boom years when the port
of Gibraltar became the transit point for the running of British manufactured
goods into European ports in neutral ships in return for European products in
direct defiance of Napoleon’s notorious ‘Continental System’. The end of the war
naturally resulted in the return of many traders to their habitual trading
routes and many previous subscribing brethren quite literally vanished from
Lodge rolls as they quickly returned to their countries of origin. The end of
the Napoleonic War also resulted in a steady reduction of British Regiments of
the Line and the law of 1815 forbidding the initiation of civilians and military
persons below the rank of corporal also brought about a further reduction of
military Lodges who on finding their hitherto plentiful supply of initiates
virtually cut off became stationary and applied for civilian warrants. Such was
the case with the Lodge of St. John No.132 (later 115) that were forced to take
this road rather than face extinction in 1826. Another important reason for the
decline of Military Lodges was the establishment of Orange Order Lodges in
British Regiments, which forced Military Chiefs to introduce new orders and
regulations between 1822 and 1847 prohibiting the formation of secret meetings
and societies in Regiments. Freemasonry in Gibraltar was therefore forced to
quite literally evolve and adapt to fast changing social, military and economic
circumstances. These issues are regularly omitted from Lodge histories but are
of vital importance to the development of many of our older Lodges. The present
Lodge of St. John was the first to adapt to new circumstances, indeed by 1832
only six years after returning their military warrant, the new civilian members
applied for permission to conduct the business of the Lodge in Spanish! This
privilege has been maintained ever since except for a brief period between 1944
and 1956. The Lodges of Inhabitants’ 153 and Friendship 278 were also affected
by the decline of military Lodges, indeed both Lodges might not have survived
the 19th Century, the Inhabitants’ Lodge in particular had it not
been for the involvement of military brethren in these Lodges. The Lodge of
Friendship became a popular Lodge among the Military Officers of the Garrison
whilst the Inhabitants’ Lodge despite two periods of dormancy spanning some
seventeen years were revived at least twice by military brethren stationed on
the Rock and became a popular Lodge for the rank and file for over a century
after being successfully revived in 1858.

Nevertheless despite the difficulties in maintaining the Masonic Light shining
on the Rock, the Provincial Grand Lodge was given the honour in 1838 of laying
the Foundation Stone for the Light-House which was to be situated at Europa
Point. There were six private Lodges in Gibraltar at the time, St. John No. 132,
Inhabitants’ No. 178, Calpe No. 325, Friendship No. 345, Calpean No. 482 and the
Oxford Light Infantry Lodge No. 582, held by members of the 52nd
Regiment, a far cry from the early 1800’s when dozens of Lodges arranged their
banners in procession for the St. John’s Day festivities. It would not be until
1876 when a similar ceremony to lay the Foundation Stone at the New Market by
the then Grand Master HRH the Prince of Wales (later King Edward VII) became the
scene of another public spectacle. By then the District consisted of four
Lodges: St. John’s, No. 115, Inhabitants’ Lodge, No. 153, Friendship Lodge, No.
278 and Meridian Lodge, No. 743 (attached to 31st Regt. And the only
Lodge still under a travelling warrant). Calpean Lodge No. 482 which had been
formed by members of the original Friendship Lodge in 1822 lapsed in 1863. Of
particular interest to us is that this Lodge also conducted their ceremonies in
the Spanish language and may account as to why it was unable to assimilate
military brethren into its ranks and survive extinction.

In the
1880’s and 1890’s Freemasonry again enjoyed a new lease of life, as Gibraltar
became an important Naval base of operations for the Home and Mediterranean
Fleets. The construction of the Naval Dockyard towards the end of the century
brought a substantial number of Military personnel back to the Rock. By this
time Military Lodges were for all intents and purposes a thing of the past and
so the local Lodges by now almost barren of civilians virtually became
stationary military Lodges in all but in name.

By 1901
Inhabitants’ Lodge had 208 members, of whom 120 were actually resident or
stationed in Gibraltar. The Lodge had been revived in 1858 after a period of
dormancy with the help of a young officer in the 31st Foot, who had
until that time expressed little interest in masonry. Robert Freke Gould later
became famous for his Masonic literature including his ‘Concise History of
Freemasonry’ a publication in seven volumes. When Inhabitants’ decided to form a
new Lodge to relieve the workload of its officers and afford further
opportunities of advancement for its members it was resolved to honour Robert
Freke Gould with the new Lodge bearing his name and subsequently numbered 2874.
Last year the Robert Freke Gould Lodge No. 2784 celebrated its centenary and has
maintained its close links with its ‘mother’ Lodge for each year at the
Installation meeting the Master and Wardens of the Inhabitants’ Lodge are
invited to sit close to their respective counterparts at the ceremony and later
at the Festive Board.

In 1902
Connaught Lodge No. 2915 named after the then Grand Master the Duke of Connaught
was constituted as a Lodge for Officers, Warrant Officers and Civil Officials or
relative rank in the army or navy. A similar Lodge for Officers was founded by
members of the Royal Lodge of Friendship in 1911, and named Letchworth Lodge No.
3503 in memory to the Grand Secretary of the United Grand Lodge of England who
had passed away the previous year. In 1923 United Services Lodge No. 3813 was
founded for members of all ranks in the three armed services stationed on the
Rock. These new Lodges became essentially military Lodges in character until
after the end of the Second World War when military personnel on the Rock
gradually dwindled to such an extent that membership to these exclusively
military lodges was inevitably opened to civilians in order to ensure its
survival. The pendulum of time has since then swung back towards civilian
brethren who have now taken on the responsibility to ensure the survival of our
Ancient Order into the new Millennium. Today we take up this responsibility with
the same conviction and determination as our past brethren. The United Services
Lodge for example, which has declined so rapidly since the withdrawal of so many
military personnel in the 1980’s has remained buoyant thanks to brethren from up
the coast and is now once again increasing its numbers thanks to the recruitment
of local brethren similarly concerned at the dwindling numbers of this Lodge. It
is thanks to this kind of initiative that our weaker Lodges as far as numbers
are concerned will be able to survive well into the new millennium.

Today,
only the historic links to its military past remain, yet the brethren who
comprise the District Grand Lodge of Gibraltar and its lodges continue with the
finest traditions of the Craft as extolled in the Ancient Charges, Regulations
and Landmarks of the Order. For over 250 years the Craft has remained an
integral part of Gibraltar’s culture and heritage.